fourwindsexpeditions.com

02/06/2024

Join us for a challenging hike to the base camp of the 5th highest mountain in the world, Makalu. We will hike to 18,600 feet from the low jungles. Departs late April and October. Join me for my 47th season.

05/10/2023

Join us for a life changing experience in October. Hike with us to Makalu,the 5th highest mountain in the world. A comfortable remote trek to the base camp of Makalu. Departs October 18. A beautiful remote hike.

03/20/2022

Getting ready to fly out to the Eastern border of Nepal. We will try to cross Nepal by foot to the Eastern border. 22 passes over 16,400 feet, 1050 miles, and 1 unclimbed peak we will attempt at near the Western border. 130 days of church.

Follow our progress live on a map at: share.garmin.com/fourwindsexpeditions

Be well have a great summer.

06/29/2021

Just prior to covid I and 3 others had attempted a first ascent in far West Nepal on the border of Tibet. I will not tell you the name because it is still unclimbed and we hope to make it back in April of 2022. The area is so untainted and pristine that we came across snow leopard tracks. We felt blessed to be in their presence knowing that they were probably watching our every move. We did not see them as they are aptly named "The ghost Cat".

06/29/2021

A rare view of Mount Everest (left side of photo) and Lhotse. The local Nepali Name is Sagamartha and the Tibetan Name is Chomolongma. Goddess mother of the earth. In April of 2001, Greg Valentine and I did the first ascent of Nireka, just tucked behind the sharp central peak.

04/10/2021

There are good days and bad days. I had done this climb 8 times before with relative ease. A beautiful line, clean granite, connection with my climbing partner. On this day my mind was not on. I was having trouble climbing the easiest things. A testament to the Buddhist saying "Your mind can create the perfect heaven or the greatest hell, its your choice". My mind was the issue, not the climb.

04/08/2021

Camp 2 on Ama Dablam. I spent 4 seasons on this beautiful peak between 98 and 2004. At that time there were no more than 4 teams on the peak and one season there was only 1 other Swiss team. If you want a significant challenge try this alpine style.

02/20/2021

The Four Winds Crew is excited to get back to it. Join us in October for 24 day trek to Makalu the 5th Highest peak in the world. We will cross the rarely traveled Amphu Labche at 20,300 feet.

11/25/2020

Amazing unclimbed peaks. You think Yosemite is big. In this photo Im standing at 12,000 feet. The peaks in the photo range from 16,000 to 19,000 feet. The Nose on El Capitan is 3000 feet. These walls are probably 1000 to 2400 feet higher than El Cap. Never been climbed, good granite, remote.

10/22/2020

Four Winds will be leading a hike to the base camp of a Makalu, the 5th highest peak in the world. We will cross the rarely traveled Sherpani col at 20,000 feet. If all goes well departure will be October of 2021. Feel free to email me at [email protected]

09/08/2020

Camp 2 on Ama Dablam is the tiny yellow tent in background.. I spent 4 seasons guiding this peak and fell in love with camp 2. An airy perch at 19,800 feet.

02/21/2020

Hike to the 5th highest peak in the world.

Hike to Makalu the 5th highest peak in Nepal - https://mailchi.mp/43c9095760a0/test-emails-matt-3111961

Day 8 on the approach hike

02/21/2020

Hike to the 5th highest peak in the world.

Test Emails Matt - https://mailchi.mp/11d0fabec4db/test-emails-matt

Day 8 on the approach hike

02/19/2020

Camp 2 on Ama Dablam. One of my foverite places in the world. Join us on this exceptional climb. Departs 2021. Climbing resume required.

02/17/2020

Join us on a hike to Makalu Base Camp. Makalu is the 5th highest peak in the world just East of Mt Everest. The hike sees very few trekkers and has amazing views of the East Face of Mt Everest. We will do an easy climb to the 20,000 foot Sherpan Col where few go. The journey will travers deep river valleys to high alpine. Slow pace and small group. Departs October 20th. Space is limited. email [email protected]

01/13/2020

Safety:
Four Winds Expeditions (FourWindsExpeditions.com) has 43 seasons in the Himalaya over a 25 year span, including 23 successful climbing expeditions. A resume which only a handful of companies can claim. With this many seasons we are probably the only company in the world that can say our safety record is flawless with the exception of a single sprained ankle. We are one of the safest companies in the Himalaya.

We have in-depth knowledge of the
medications to prescribe for high altitude mountain
sickness, we always have connection with a satellite
phone, we are connected with a GPS emergency SOS
beacon 24/7, we intimately know the acclimatization
techniques, and we carry a pulse oximeter to monitor your
acclimatization. To date we have never had to use any of
these safety features. We also know that there is no other
company that has every aspect of this combination. We
are safe, we keep you safe.

Photos Fioretti collection:
Mt Everest and Lhotse from camp 2 on the rarely climbed South ridge of Pumori. Group successfully circumambulates Mt Kailash the Tibetan holy pilgrimage.

12/29/2019

First ascent of Nirekha peak. I remember this day clearly even though it was April of 2004. The route was a sharp ridge with beautiful ice, not a single soul except from my climbing partner Greg Valentine and I, and the nagging thought, how are we going to get down? This photo was taken by Greg at about 19,300 feet.

11/30/2019

Translation problems

The village was at least 300 years old. My Tibetan is horrible.

11/12/2019

Want to cross Tibet? If your looking for a real adventure, this is it. This is going into the unknown. It is 119 miles on foot, crosses 2 passes up to 18,600 feet, circumambulates holy Mt Kailash, visits three 700 year old monastery's, holy lake dips, river crossings, hot springs, remote, 17 days on trail, exit through West Nepal and a rarely entered sanctuary, snow leopards, musk deer, LIFE CHANGING.

DEPARTS SEPTEMBER 2020

FourWindsExpeditions.com
25 years specializing in the Himalaya
43 seasons at altitude
23 successful climbing expeditions
We are high altitude Specialists

10/31/2019

Himalayan Giant

We encountered this beuty on our approach to an unclimbed peak. The Himalayan Lammergeier has a wingspan between 9 and 12 feet. The width of the wing can be between 15 and 24 inches. They have been known to pick up baby yaks. Join us on our next adventure, perhaps you may encounter this amazing bird. March trek to Makalu. FourWindsExpeditions.com

10/05/2019

Ice climbing in Iceland

I asked a local Icelander if anyone had climbed that, pointing to some steep ice routes leading to a flat summit. He scrunched his forehead and in a "no idiot" tone smiled and said "no-one goes there in winter" Climbers there are hundreds of first ascents to be had in Iceland. I love the feeling of going into the unknown, its where we all go everyday. 😉After my diagnosis I began writing a book and am almost finished. Part of the book is about the reality that the next minute is not a guarantee, therefore we are constantly going into the unknown.

10/01/2019

Expedition Life

At the end of our 36 day expedition to climb an unclimbed peak in West Nepal on the border of Tibet, a look into one of the challenges. "Clean underwear". Expedition life is super fun and also full of suffering. At night I often would think about friends crawling into there comfy beds and laying their heads on down pillows. When living in a tent for 30 plus days think about crawling into your icebox every night and sleeping there. On some expeditions I would sometimes wake to a small snow flurry on my sleeping bag. The process of my breath instantly turning to ice and accumulating on top of my bag. Arriving home after such a journey and flipping on a switch to get light or heat...... wow. It is easy to be thankful and have big gratitude for such simple things. Get out and tweak your world once in awhile. Matt Fioretti has guided 43 seasons in the Himalaya. "Possibly" more than any other Western Guide in the world.

08/28/2019

The ice climb "Synchronicity" was my last climb with my friend on the right who died in the mountains of Patagonia living fully. Chad you were a mountain breathing dragon. Justin (on left) and Chad, miss you guys deeply. Chad had a saying that always sticks with me and hope it will influence you. "Don't like what your doing?........ Don't do it."

08/26/2019

September of 2018 we attempted a peak that had never been climbed. This was our high point at 17,600 feet about 2400 feet below the summit. The false summit is in the photo and the real summit is beyond that. We will be returning in 2021. We spent about 36 days on the expedition. Traveled very light with 7 mules and 2 duffle bags each for 5 team members and 5 crew.

07/26/2019

Crossed paths with this lone yak about 4 miles from the Tibetan border. This was taken near the south base camp of the 6th highest peak in the world Cho Oyu. It reminds me of a Tibetan proverb. " Better to live your life with the spirit of a tiger for one day than live 1000 years as a sheep"

We are now accepting trekkers for our mid October trip West of Mt Everest. Feel free to email us with questions.

05/28/2019

Hi Everyone. I thought I would shed some light on climbing Everest since it is big in the news. First off probably 70% of the people there are not climbers. I do not have a hard number but while I'm guiding I have run into more than a handful of people during the season that were heading to climb Everest. One such couple lived in Alaska. I asked them excitedly where they like to climb in Alaska. Having spent 2 seasons on Denali, the Alaskan range is an Alpinist dream. When they responded I was shocked. "Nope don't climb". Here they were going to climb the tallest peak in the world but they had not even climbed a mountain. It takes years of honing your skills to climb Everest. Not just technical skills but intuitive skills that come with being in the frey time and time again. I've seen people taking classes on how to use a Jumar ( a rope ascending device) at Everest Base Camp. Look, just because I can drive a car does not mean I can get into the Indy 500. There is a logical workup to the Indy 500 and it takes years of driving. Or just because I want to fly a plane does not mean I can do it without training. Everest is no different, the work up or learning curve is long. Prior to 2001 if a skilled climber wanted to climb any mountain in the Himalaya he/she had to submit their climbing resume to the country of origins Alpine Club. For example, I had to submit my resume to the American Alpine club for many climbs. The alpine club would then decide if you have the skills or not and would submit to the ministry of tourism in Nepal. Nepal needs to go back to this system. This would eliminate the crowds, allow people with the correct skill set on the mountain, and ultimately reduce the deaths due to poor judgment and skills. Be well. fourwindsexpeditions.com photo Fioretti Collection- Everest and Makalu

05/06/2019

Mt Everest on left. The local Tibetan name is Chomolongma which means "Goddess Mother of the Earth" The peak in the central back ground, Lhotse, is the 4th highest peak in the world but is often over looked because of its proximity to Chomolongma. Lhotse means high place in the south. Taken from the SE ridge on Pumori. Fioretti collection

04/29/2019

On our way to do the second ascent of a peak called Kyajo Ri in 2003. In 2001 we tried the first ascent. The "little" black peaks are 17,000 feet high while the giants in the back stand at over 20,000 feet, a vertical mile higher than Mt Rainier. Matt Fioretti and his crew guide this peak every few years. Join us.

04/14/2019

A Tibetan woman lays out her prayer beads in prayer. This was taken in front of the Jokang Monastery. One of the most important monasteries in Tibetan Buddhism.

03/05/2019

Four Winds led by Matt Fioretti will be departing March 11th for the guide services 43 season in the Himalaya. We are excited about this trip as we have not been to the Manaslu area since 1999. Manaslu is the 8th highest peak in the world. We will be on the trail for 20 days circumambulating the mountain. Follow the teams journey at: share.garmin.com/fourwindsexpeditions.